### Chapter 113: A Taste of Fragrance, Bai Yu’s Flavor
Zhao Mingyue remembered the reward she mentioned—Bai Yu definitely recalled that the girl thought she had helped her out a lot back in Ping Shan Village and, feeling exhausted, wanted to give herself a treat. However, she hadn’t brought it up last night when they returned.
“I remember.”
“Uh… I was too tired last night and forgot. Let’s talk about it when we get back tonight. Actually, it can’t really be considered a reward; it should be more of a thank-you, just a little gesture of appreciation.”
Zhao Mingyue felt the need to add that in her heart; she sounded a bit shy, which made Bai Yu start to wonder what exactly this “thank you” was all about.
The street was silent, belonging to the suburbs and even more remote than the Sunshine Apartments. There weren’t many people around, except for a few old security cameras that, under the influence of ghostly energy, briefly malfunctioned.
“Wait here for me, and also wait for Lu Liangting to come back. I just need to handle a matter with Chen Bingtang upstairs; I’ll be down quickly. We probably won’t have anything else tonight, so we can come back next time,” the Store Manager said, turning back toward the apartment building.
He wasn’t worried about Zhao Mingyue’s safety; with the strength of her shadow companion, she wouldn’t have any issues even if the evil spirit were to pop up.
With the gentle night breeze blowing, Zhao Mingyue found a place to sit and slowly waited for Lu Liangting to return.
She wanted to follow him to check it out, but alas, Lu Liangting ran away too fast—one moment he was there and the next, gone without a trace. No one had any idea where he sprinted off to.
“Bai Yu, who was that masked person back there? Your old friend? Why did Lu Liangting go chasing after her?”
“I can’t be sure, but she’s definitely one of those organizations in the shadows. I suspect their purpose is to capture ghosts,” Bai Yu replied nonchalantly. “They might be related to Lu Liangting’s sister. He probably noticed some distinct features.”
“Isn’t Lu Liangting being a bit reckless? What if he gets surrounded?”
“I think he isn’t worried.”
“True, it’s not every day we find clues. Ah, everyone has their own story.” Zhao Mingyue stretched her arms. “What about that person in the apartment?”
“Let Lu Liangting handle it; there’s probably nothing useful we can get from her.”
“Ahaha, you’re right.”
Bai Yu’s comment made Zhao Mingyue a bit embarrassed. She had been a bit too rough with that person in the apartment; if she pushed harder, she’d probably end up smashing them to bits. Besides, she had no little black room at home, so bringing that person back would be pointless.
Who knows, the police might even come knocking, and that would be a hassle.
At least Lu Liangting had money and influence in his family, and he had close ties with the police. Just let him deal with it since that woman was an enemy of his anyway.
“But speaking of which, that evil spirit was terrifying,” Zhao Mingyue reflected on the centipede she just encountered, feeling a bit nauseated.
How could such a twisted and horrific creature exist? Just imagining that monster possessing poor Chen Bingtang made Zhao Mingyue feel heavy-hearted.
You have to know, that monster was Chen Bingtang’s mother. After possessing her, it showed no intention of harming her—at least Chen Bingtang didn’t have any visible injuries.
“What do you think is the difference between an evil spirit and a ghost?”
“The difference lies in their modes of existence. A ghost possesses its own body and survives on resentment—essentially a type of spiritual energy—while an evil spirit has no resentment, no physical form, more leaning toward pure thought.”
“Which one is more difficult to deal with?”
“The evil spirit.”
“So, do you think you could take on that centipede from earlier?”
“I can, just haven’t found the right method. It’s tough to totally k*ll it.”
Zhao Mingyue rested her elbows on her knees, cradling her face in her hands. “Bai Yu, you’ve been talking a lot today. Did you have a big meal or something?”
“I just wanted to explain things to you.”
“Hehe, then next time I’ll ask you more questions and make sure you’re well-fed.” She leaned back and gazed at the starry sky, falling silent for a long time, a gentle smile unintentionally breaking across her face.
“Thank you,” she said suddenly in the silence.
“What?”
“Oh, nothing. I just feel a bit sentimental. It seems like I’ve been living in a dream all this time. Ah~ If this really is a dream, don’t let me wake up, just let me keep dreaming.”
“…” Bai Yu was silent for a moment too, feeling the warmth from the Rabbit Plush Toy she inhabited as Zhao Mingyue hugged it tightly after pulling it out.
“This isn’t a dream, so you’ll never wake up.”
“Ooh.” Hearing Bai Yu’s words, Zhao Mingyue suddenly lifted the Rabbit Plush Toy toward the sky, then promptly planted a big kiss on its face. “You’re right! Since this isn’t a dream, I’ll never wake up!”
A faint lipstick mark was left on the Rabbit Plush Toy’s face, barely noticeable.
As Zhao Mingyue was preparing for a second kiss, she noticed in her peripheral vision that Lu Liangting had returned. Even from his walking posture, he looked a little downcast.
She quickly got up and approached him. “Lu Liangting.”
He glanced at Zhao Mingyue, forcing a smile. “Mingyue.”
Seeing his expression, Zhao Mingyue had a pretty good idea of what was going on. She didn’t pry any further, instead pointing toward the apartment building. “There’s still someone in there; she’s with the one that ran away. Try to bring her out, no matter where, you might get something useful.”
Hearing Zhao Mingyue’s suggestion, Lu Liangting’s eyes lit up, shaking off his previous slump.
Right, one might have escaped, but there’s still one in the building!
He had a hundred ways to detain that woman without breaking the law, and information could be obtained slowly.
“Thank you!” Lu Liangting felt a rush of hope.
“No need to thank me.” Zhao Mingyue waved her hand; she just wanted to be polite.
But what she didn’t expect was for Lu Liangting to immediately reply, “Thank Bai Yu for me; I’ll repay her!”
With that, he hurriedly dashed back into the apartment building, clearly afraid that the woman would make a run for it.
Left standing there, Zhao Mingyue felt a bit dazed. She really wanted to open Lu Liangting’s brain and see what quirky thoughts were bouncing around in there.
Did he just forget that Bai Yu devoured your SSR?
Not only without resentment, but even expressing gratitude, huh?
Before long, the Store Manager came down carrying a box, calling for Zhao Mingyue to get in the car.
The situation tonight hadn’t been resolved completely, but the good news was the evil spirit had been injured, making future confrontations easier. The Store Manager wasn’t in a hurry; tonight was not the time to provoke the evil spirit. They’d wait a few days before coming back.
In the car, Li Tianan and Zhao Mingyue discussed the matter of Chen Bingtang. The situation looked relatively optimistic, since, after all, she was the evil spirit’s daughter and the spirit held no malice as severe as Chen Hao had mentioned.
As for that organization from today, the Store Manager said he didn’t have much information on them either.
After a quiet ride, the car came to a smooth stop across from the Sunshine Apartments.
Zhao Mingyue got out, watching Li Tianan drive away, only then remembering her bike was still at the convenience store!
“Eh, never mind, I’ll just grab a shared bike tomorrow.”
Back home, the first thing Zhao Mingyue did once she opened the door was flop down onto the sofa.
“I’m so tired, but this outing was worth it. I’m full, and you’re full too.”
She had dinner at a restaurant and had eaten quite well, stuffing herself to the brim. By the time they reached the mission location, Bai Yu had also eaten quite a lot—three Red-clothed Evil Ghosts, to be exact. Under normal circumstances, one wouldn’t be able to consume that much without a couple of task completions.
She noticed that Bai Yu was a bit picky; she typically wouldn’t eat little ghosts or evil spirits, and even if she did, they had to be of the Red-clothed Evil Ghost caliber.
Bai Yu manifested beside Zhao Mingyue.
“Bai Yu, how much stronger are you going to get this time?”
“More than sixty percent.”
“That much?” Zhao Mingyue sat up straight.
“Not bad.”
“So this is what ‘not bad’ means? No way, I have to give it a shot too; I remember I still have a lottery chance!” She pulled out her black phone and opened the lottery page, looking at Bai Yu. “Want to draw?”
“Sure.”
“Alright then!”
Zhao Mingyue tapped the screen lightly, and the wheel began spinning. She focused intently, hoping for an explosive stroke of luck this time to land a Red-clothed Evil Ghost for Bai Yu to snack on next time.
The wheel slowed and finally stopped, revealing a glowing prize.
[Congratulations! You have won: bl**d of Evil!]
[bl**d of Evil]
[Turns out gods can bleed too. I wonder if bleeding gods can still be called gods.]
[Living people can’t use this item. Using this item will significantly enhance ghostly aura and increase bl**d thread intensity.]
[Caution: Please handle this item with care; it’s extremely attractive to ghosts.]
[Caution: Using this item will attract all ghosts in the vicinity 100%.]
A palm-sized black wooden box shot into Zhao Mingyue’s pocket, feeling somewhat heavy, filled with a thick, viscous liquid that was immediately felt through the touch.
“Ah, well, there are no Red-clothed ones left, but this is still a pretty decent item. It’s yours!”
Zhao Mingyue ignored the last two lines of warnings. Attracting ghosts didn’t matter; anyone daring to come here was just a snack for Bai Yu anyway; the real key was how much this would boost her.
“Want to give it a try, the bl**d of a god?”
Bai Yu took the black box, feeling drawn to it even before opening it—an intriguing sensation, like a thirsty traveler stumbling upon an oasis in the desert, that irresistible allure almost impossible to resist.
She frowned and opened the box.
In an instant, that attraction multiplied, and a voice seemed to urge her to absorb the black bl**d inside.
Having trained with blades for years, Bai Yu had strong willpower, so she could easily devour three Red-clothed Evil Ghosts without batting an eye—fifty Red-clothed would just feel like a small tweak.
If she found this so alluring, then it would be no surprise how powerful it was for other ghosts.
Bai Yu didn’t waste time; veins of bl**d threads spread from her palms, diving into the wooden box, ravenously absorbing the black divine bl**d within.
With every drop of divine bl**d consumed, her aura visibly transformed.
Her aura was already terrifying, but now it was rapidly increasing. However, it leaned more towards a brutal ferocity, invoking the sense of a bl**d-soaked battlefield, a sea of corpses and rivers of bl**d.
At the same time, Bai Yu could distinctly feel the strength and quantity of her bl**d threads increasing—though it wasn’t by much, only around twenty percent, but quite noticeable.
“Good stuff.”
Even she couldn’t help but exclaim.
In less than two minutes, the thick black bl**d inside the wooden box was completely consumed. Bai Yu set down the box, and bl**d threads spread out beneath her feet, reaching out in all directions.
In that brief moment, four ghosts arrived in Zhao Mingyue’s apartment, two of which were even evil spirits.
Sudden, shrill cries pierced the air, and after about ten seconds, silence returned to the apartment—all ghosts had been swept away.
“How do you feel?” Zhao Mingyue asked, filled with anticipation.
“Not bad.”
“That’s great!” Seeing Bai Yu’s improvement made Zhao Mingyue happier than her own gains.
“Now you stay here to digest that while I take a shower.” With light steps, Zhao Mingyue walked back inside, grabbing her clothes and stopping at the bathroom door to ask in classic fashion, “Want to wash together?”
“No thanks.”
“Tch.” Pouting, Zhao Mingyue dove into the bathroom.
Half an hour later, she emerged freshly changed, and the fragrance wafting from her was delightful. Standing in front of the mirror, she spent quite a while drying her hair before stealthily rummaging through her bedroom for something.
Bai Yu stood in the living room, slowly digesting the boost she had just received.
At this moment, she hadn’t sensed Zhao Mingyue’s odd behavior.
When Zhao Mingyue finally came out, Bai Yu noticed her hands were shoved into her pockets, a mysterious look on her face.
“Bai Yu.”
Zhao Mingyue stood before Bai Yu, smiling.
“I said I’d give you a reward, right? Close your eyes.”
Bai Yu felt puzzled but closed her eyes anyway, secretly wondering just what this girl was up to.
Across from her, Zhao Mingyue took a deep breath.
With Bai Yu’s face no more than thirty centimeters away, she only had to lean forward a bit…
Spotting Bai Yu’s pale lips, Zhao Mingyue felt like her nails were going to dig into her palms. Really, her heart hadn’t raced this fast even on the way back to Ping Shan Village.
‘Just this one chance!’
Giving herself a mental pep talk, Zhao Mingyue closed her own eyes too, leaning in and quickly touching her lips against Bai Yu’s. Even so, she felt Bai Yu’s lips were cold and soft.
Bai Yu opened her eyes to find Zhao Mingyue’s cheeks flushed, her gaze darting around as though she’d done something naughty but was too shy to admit it, and yet mustered the courage to look directly at her.
“Hey, this is for you, a token of my thanks!”
Zhao Mingyue held out a small box, nearly shoving it in Bai Yu’s face, but she didn’t realize it because she couldn’t even bear to meet Bai Yu’s eyes.
—
Ten o’clock remains.
Please vote, I’m begging you!
